VIJAYAWADA: Gannavaram Airport is all set to initiate international services from 2018, starting with direct flights to Dubai. The international services of Air India have come forward to start the services with a Boeing carrying 160 passengers on each trip.
Airport officials are redesigning the old terminal and making it ready for the international services by spending over `50 lakh. Soon, Gannavaram Airport is going to have immigration services, as recently, a team from Delhi and Hyderabad inspected the Airport.
Officials are expecting that customs and immigration services would be made available at the Gannavaram Airport by January 15. In fact, the immigration and customs desk were expected to be ready by early this year. Due to the delay of having the international tag, it got postponed. Officials are citing that soon the installation of X-Ray baggage scanners, security and surveillance systems would be set up at the old terminal and expecting to start international services by mid-January 2018.
Currently, with over `50 lakh, airport authorities have started beautification works and renovating the terminal.
Airport director G Madhusudhan Rao said that setting up the immigration desk will clear the route for international operations and connectivity to other countries from Gannavaram Airport. “Majority of NRIs are waiting for International flights to operate from here as they can directly take off from her instead of going to Hyderabad or Chennai,” he said.